Bleed Like Me

Epilogue

Family Killer Cottam in Prison Suicide

The Ministry of Justice announced today that Owen Cottam (45) was found dead in his cell at Frankland High Security Prison in County Durham, in the early hours of yesterday morning. Cottam was serving a full-term life sentence for the murder of his wife Pamela, their daughter Penny, and his brother-in-law Michael Milne and two ten-year sentences for the attempted murder of Cottam’s two young sons.

Landlord Cottam was the subject of a nationwide manhunt last year when he fled the Oldham pub where he and his family lived, taking the two boys with him. DC Rachel Bailey of Manchester Metropolitan Police is credited with finding and rescuing the children, who, doctors say, would soon have succumbed to death as a result of hypothermia and dehydration. The youngsters were reunited with their maternal grandmother and are now believed to be living in the Republic of Ireland.

The MoJ said: ‘As with all deaths in custody, the independent Prisons and Probation Ombudsman will conduct an investigation.’ The investigation will examine how Cottam, found hanging in his cell, was able to take his own life in spite of being classified as at risk and subject to suicide prevention procedures.

Financial difficulties and the end of Cottam’s tenancy at the Journeys Inn were believed to be the factors which precipitated the murders. Criminal psychologist Professor Henry Threlfall said, ‘The prospect of financial ruin and shame can be an intolerable burden for some men who believe it is their responsibility to provide for their family. When they are at risk of being exposed, a small minority will seek suicide rather than suffer the shame of their failure. In a few rare cases some individuals will also endeavour to take their family with them. A phenomenon which we are still trying to fully understand.’